SLIMMING WORLD: Following the amazing response last week to our piece on the dangers of men being overweight we really feel we should apologize.
It was never our intention to scare anyone; unfortunately the truth has a habit of doing that.
The numbers we gave you weren’t our own figures; they were the findings of different studies done by the World Health Organisation and Health Ireland Survey, among others.
Statistics from Health Ireland Survey in 2015 state that 60% of adults in the Republic of Ireland are overweight (37%) or obese (23%).
Obesity has more than doubled in Ireland in the last 20 years. The proportion of men with an obese BMI has risen from 8% to 25%, while the proportion of women has risen from 13% to 22%.
People who struggle with their weight often suffer low confidence and self-esteem. Poor mobility and generally poorer quality of life are other common experiences, as are increased risk of chronic diseases such as heart disease, diabetes, arthritis, high blood pressure and some types of cancer.
That’s only the beginning….
By 2030 it is estimated that 89% of Irish men and 85% of Irish women will have weight problems. By the same year researchers predict 57% of Irish women and 48% of Irish men will have reached an obese state. (WHO 2015)
The European Obesity Summit (EOS) 2016 was held in Gothenburg, Sweden last week and some of the more significant findings were as follows;
Overweight men who had a larger waist measurement were more at risk of prostate cancer.
Overweight children are 9% more likely to develop colon cancer as an adult.
The only silver lining to this particular cloud is that this is a prediction, it isn’t yet a fact, and we can still change it.
We can sit back and cry at successive governments to introduce a tax on sugar or reduce the cost of healthy food or we can make a stand and take responsibility for our own lives and well being.
Moderate changes to our eating habits and daily activity will reap amazing rewards. Every week in groups across Donegal we help our members find ways they can prepare meals not just for themselves but for the entire family, teaching a whole new generation the benefits of healthy eating.
If you change nothing, nothing will change, you decide.
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